Natural gas utilization: Current status and opportunities

Research on Resistance to Water Intoxication of LaCoO3 Doped with Fe at B Sites

In this paper, the methods of spin polarization density functional theory and vasp software package are used to simulate the adsorption of H2O molecules on the surface of LaCoO3 and La2CoFeO6(001). It was found that when Fe was doped at B-sites, the adsorption energy changed from -3.7493 eV at CoO2 to -2.5397 eV at CoFeO4, which decreased by about 1/3. Meanwhile, the change of electric charge and the amount of electron transfer decreased overall. The results indicated that Fe doping could inhibit the adsorption of H2O by perovskites and thus hinder the next toxic reaction. Therefore, this paper will lay a certain theoretical foundation for the study of perovskite anti-poisoning mechanism and provide a meaningful reference for further experimental research.

Electrocatalytic methane oxidation to formate on magnesium based metal-organic frameworks

The electrochemical methane oxidation reaction is a potential approach for upgrading the nature-abundant methane (CH₄) into value-added chemicals, while the activity and selectivity have remained substantially low due to the extremely inert chemical property of CH₄. Inspired by the methane mono-oxygenase in nature, we demonstrated Mg-substituted metal-organic frameworks (Mg-MOF-74) containing a uniform distribution of Mg-oxo-Mg nodes as efficient catalytic sites. Compared to MgNi-MOF-74 and Mg(OH)₂ without the Mg-oxo-Mg nodes, the Mg-MOF-74 presented a much enhanced CH₄ electrooxidation performance, with a unique selectivity of producing formate. The maximum Faradaic efficiency of all liquid products reached 10.9% at 1.60 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE), corresponding to the peak production rate of 126.6 μmol·h^-1·g^-1.

Direct Conversion of Methane to C2 Hydrocarbons in Solid-State Membrane Reactors at High Temperatures

Direct conversion of methane to C₂ compounds by oxidative and nonoxidative coupling reactions has been intensively studied in the past four decades; however, because these reactions have intrinsic severe thermodynamic constraints, they have not become viable industrially. Recently, with the increasing availability of inexpensive "green electrons" coming from renewable sources, electrochemical technologies are gaining momentum for reactions that have been challenging for more conventional catalysis. Using solid-state membranes to control the reacting species and separate products in a single step is a crucial advantage. Devices using ionic or mixed ionic-electronic conductors can be explored for methane coupling reactions with great potential to increase selectivity. Although these technologies are still in the early scaling stages, they offer a sustainable path for the utilization of methane and benefit from the advances in both solid oxide fuel cells and electrolyzers. This review identifies promising developments for solid-state methane conversion reactors by assessing multifunctional layers with microstructural control; combining solid electrolytes (proton and oxygen ion conductors) with active and selective electrodes/catalysts; applying more efficient reactor designs; understanding the reaction/degradation mechanisms; defining standards for performance evaluation; and carrying techno-economic analysis.

An Overview of Economic Analysis and Environmental Impacts of Natural Gas Conversion Technologies

This study presents an overview of the economic analysis and environmental impact of natural gas conversion technologies. Published articles related to economic analysis and environmental impact of natural gas conversion technologies were reviewed and discussed. The economic analysis revealed that the capital and the operating expenditure of each of the conversion process is strongly dependent on the sophistication of the technical designs. The emerging technologies are yet to be economically viable compared to the well-established steam reforming process. However, appropriate design modifications could significantly reduce the operating expenditure and enhance the economic feasibility of the process. The environmental analysis revealed that emerging technologies such as carbon dioxide (CO2) reforming and the thermal decomposition of natural gas offer advantages of lower CO2 emissions and total environmental impact compared to the well-established steam reforming process. Appropriate design modifications such as steam reforming with carbon capture, storage and utilization, the use of an optimized catalyst in thermal decomposition, and the use of solar concentrators for heating instead of fossil fuel were found to significantly reduced the CO2 emissions of the processes. There was a dearth of literature on the economic analysis and environmental impact of photocatalytic and biochemical conversion processes, which calls for increased research attention that could facilitate a comparative analysis with the thermochemical processes.